Julianne Kay Downey

Julie was born on November 26th, 1969 in Silver Spring, Maryland, and spent her childhood and teenage years in Gaithersburg, Maryland. She attended Damascus High School and continued on to graduate from West Virginia University. She then moved to Florida where she met her husband, Shawn, while working together at Pep’s Sea Grill in Jupiter. She was an Elementary and Middle School teacher for many years before transitioning to insurance auditing in order to spend more time with her children and family. She spent nearly every summer of her life at the Cotton Patch on Canandaigua Lake in New York, waterskiing, playing cards, and sharing meals with her family.

Julie was the most loving soul who lit up every room she entered with her bright, beautiful smile and radiant laugh. Her absolute favorite word to hear was “MOM” and she loved and cherished that role more than anything else in her life. She was so full of love and gratitude and shared it with everyone she met. Julie was a second mom to all of her children’s friends, loving on them and caring for them as her own. Her children had to be careful with love interests they brought home because as the song goes “She falls in love a little faster than I do”. Julie loved traveling, creating art, decorating, yoga, cooking, and spending time outdoors - swimming, kayaking, boating, hiking, gardening, storm chasing, walking her dogs, and digging her feet in the sand.

She is preceded in death by her mother, Sonja “Sonny” Lightbody; grandparents Sherman and Esther Cotton, and Muriel and John Lightbody; mother-in-law, Cynthia Chivas; her beloved Austin Flynn, Sawyer’s boyfriend; Heather Vale, one of her best friends; and many furry family members. She is survived by her loving husband of 29 years, Shawn Downey; their children, Sawyer, Max, and Tyler; her father, John “Jack” Lightbody, Jr.; aunt, Kay Cotton; sister, Leslie Lightbody; brother, Ken Lightbody; sister-in-law, Beth Lightbody; nephew, Joey Lightbody; niece, Alena Lightbody; and many extended relatives and dear friends.

A celebration of her life will take place on Saturday, October 26th at Serenity Funeral Home and Gardens 13401 Indian Rocks Rd. Largo, Florida 33774. Arrival/Greeting begins at 10am with the service beginning at 11am. Reception to follow at Salt Rock Grill in Indian Shores. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the Florida Springs Council (https://www.floridaspringscouncil.org) or the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (https://give.bcrf.org). Arrangements handled by Serenity Funeral Home 727-562-2080